


Because I love you

by ChocoNut



Category: A Song of Ice and Fire & Related Fandoms, A Song of Ice and Fire - George R. R. Martin, Game of Thrones (TV)
Genre: Canon Compliant, Declarations Of Love, F/M, First Kiss, Post-Season/Series 07, a mushy proposal
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-04-28
Updated: 2018-04-28
Packaged: 2019-04-28 15:31:24
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,058
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14452254
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ChocoNut/pseuds/ChocoNut
Summary: My contribution to the J/B Online's 100,000 post celebration. My prompt was, "Why are you helping me?"Post S07, Jaime arrives at Winterfell and Brienne reacts in a way he doesn't quite expect..





	Because I love you

It had been some time since he had arrived at Winterfell. A deserter. A traitor to his sister. He remembered the day he had walked out of the Red Keep. Walked out on Cersei. The love of his life, or so he thought. He had never really been considered a man of honour. _Kingslayer_ , is what they called him behind his back. Even after all these years. _Oathbreaker_ , they said. Little did they know that by breaking his oath, he had saved them all.

 _Fuck Loyalty_ , Brienne had told him. That was exactly what he did. He had made a promise. And this time, he would keep it. He rode away, a lone horseman. Winter had come.

He had not exactly expected a warm welcome in the North. Daenerys had an old score to settle with him. And so had Bran. He had heard that it had taken a great deal of recommendation from Jon and Bran to convince the queen to let him go. Jon was of the opinion that Jaime, despite all his past crimes was still an experienced military commander. He was now their ally. He had come here at great personal risk to offer his services to them. He betrayed his sister. He was guilty of treason. And, he still was an honourable man. _Strange,_ Jaime thought. _Jon thinks of me as honourable._

 _He has a role to play in the events to come_ , Bran had said. _He knows I threw him down the window_ , Jaime thought. But, Bran didn't seem to hold anything against him. _He doesn't hold any emotion at all_ , Jaime thought.

Jaime was eventually pardoned. Strangely, Jaime thought, his trial had not been his nagging problem.

 _It was Brienne_. The one person he expected would accept him unconditionally in the North.

 _There is honour in you, Ser Jaime, I have seen it_ , she had told him once. And now when he had kept his word and ridden North, he was surprised that he got a less than warm welcome from her.

 _It's good to see you here, Ser Jaime,_ she had said. And that was all she had said. And that bothered him. He didn't care what Jon or Daenerys or Sansa thought of him. He didn't really care about Tyrion's opinion either. It was not that he ever cared about what people thought about him. But Brienne's opinion mattered, he had to know why she had been so indifferent to him.

It then occured to him, that their last interaction at the Dragonpit was not quite.. pleasant. Could it be that she was hurt by his curt response to her? How could he tell her that he did it all to save her from Cersei ? If he had even looked at her more than he did, Cersei might have had her killed.

He decided to speak to her.

The next morning he saw her training the new recruits. He stood there watching her, admiring her skilled swordplay. A smile came to his face as he was reminded of their swordfight when he was her captive. She had defeated him. When he still had two hands. He managed to catch her alone after the last of the lot had left.

"Good morning, Ser Jaime". Once again the formal tone, thought Jaime. Gods, this was going to be an awkward conversation, he sighed. He hesitated. He was never one for conversations or apologies or explanations. Talking was Tyrion's forte.

"I just wanted to tell you that.. that.. you make a great teacher. I have been watching you training these young men, and I'm sure they will make excellent swordsmen."

Brienne politely thanked him and left. 

Jaime was furious with himself. _What is wrong with me? Locke didn't cut off my tongue along with my hand._  

That night, after supper, Tyrion came to meet him. 

"You seem to be quite lucky to have been acquitted. The queen was prepared to execute you as soon as you entered."

Jaime smirked "Apparently, I am quite popular here. Jon thinks I'm honourable. I am touched". Tyrion was surprised "Jon? who told you that?"

Now it was Jaime's turn to be surprised. "That's what I have been hearing since the trial. Jon put in a good word for me as did Bran."

Tyrion rolled his eyes "So, you really don't know".

"Know what?"

"Jon didn't trust you. Nor did he believe that you have any honour. It was Brienne of Tarth. It was she who begged and reasoned with Jon and Daenerys that you be pardoned. _There is still honour in him_ , she said. She was nearly in tears when she was defending you. She spoke about how you had saved her from rape.. and how you jumped in to fight a bear to save her life."

Tyrion looked at Jaime. "You really mean a lot to her, my dear brother."

 Jaime's heart was racing. _Why has she been avoiding me then? Does she think that I don't care for her? Doesn't she realise that I came here for her?_

"Well, I definitely knew you came here for her. I saw you both at the Dragonpit. I heard your exchange. And then, I knew, you both cared for each other. A lot. Am I correct in assuming so? I am a good judge of character you know, so I am usually right about these things." Tyrion winked at him, and Jaime suddenly realised that he had spoken out aloud and his heart was out for Tyrion to hear.

"Go on, speak to her. I don't think I can bear to see you pining away for her like this. If you don't speak to her, I will. And I'll tell her that my idiot of a brother is head over heels in love with her."

Jaime scowled at him "I'm the elder brother, thank you, and I can manage my own affairs without you interfering."

Tyrion gave him a friendly pat on the arm "Then go. Make it _your affair_. You have wasted enough of your life for others. I think it is time to do something to make yourself happy. Listen to your heart, Jaime. Cersei was your past. Brienne is your future. Embrace your future."

Jaime knocked on Brienne's door. She was surprised to see him so late in the night.

"Ser Jaime, is something wrong?"

He entered her chambers and shut the door behind him.

"Brienne, why are you doing this?"

"Why am I doing what?"

"You have been avoiding me since my arrival. Have I done anything to offend you?" 

"You have not done anything to offend me and I am not avoiding you. I have just been a bit busy."

Jaime raised his voice "Stop beating about the bush. Since I came, you have not even spoken properly to me barring the necessary courtesies. You avoid me at mealtimes and you prefer to train with Bronn instead of me. Has your opinion of me changed? I do apologise for my curt behaviour when we last met. I was only acting the way I did as we were on opposite sides. I thought you would understand."

Brienne didn't quite look him in the eye as she replied "It's quite alright, Ser Jaime. I took no offence. You were right in what you said then. Now you are here. That is what matters to the North."

"That is what matters to the North?", Jaime repeated. "Matters only to the North? Does it not matter to you that I am here? Does it not matter to you that I came here for you? If it does not, then why did you defend me? _Why are you helping me?_ "

"Goodnight, Ser Jaime. It is quite late."

"I will not leave unless you answer me. You keep away from me, you hardly speak to me, you are awfully courteous to me. I hate your courtesies.I want my old Brienne back. The Brienne who showed me the mirror when I deserved it and helped me stay alive when I was facing my worst. The Brienne who believed in me, who still thought there was honour in an old cripple like me. If... that Brienne is still in there."

"I did defend you, Ser Jaime. And I will continue to. You ask me why I am avoiding you." She paused "Because I care for you. I kept away from you because I fear my feelings for you would come in the way of my duty to Lady Sansa and her mother. Because I fear that you too will be taken away from me like everyone else I cared about."

"I am helping you...because I love you.", she finished. She could not look at him anymore. She lowered her eyes and turned away from him and spoke again with her back to him.

"Ofcourse it's not your fault that I feel this way for you. All my life, I have been used to men rejecting me because of my looks. So, I do not expect anything from you as well. It's just that, I cannot bear to get too close to you and get hurt again."

Jaime moved towards her, took her arm and turned her around to face him.

"So, finally I don't have to compete with Renly any more", he said softly. "I've been sick of hearing praises of your precious Renly."

He moved closer to her.

"Gods, wench, I've never wooed a woman before, so I don't know how to do this. All I can say is.."

He went down on one knee and took her hand in his.

"Did you really think I would reject you because of your looks? Am I that shallow ? I have grown tired of beautiful women flocking towards me all my life. They say, beauty lies in the eyes of the beholder and to me, you are the most beautiful woman in the world. You have a beautiful soul."

"These are times of war, but there is nothing more I would wish than to spend the rest of my life with you. To grow old with you. To die in your arms. You made me an honorable knight from the despicable Kingslayer that I was. You made me the Oathkeeper from the Oathbreaker that I was."

Jaime went on. "Fuck Loyalty. That is what you advised me. Now I am asking the same of you. You said your feelings for me will get in the way of your duty. Forget Sansa or Jon or the queen for a moment. Think of your happiness for a change instead of putting someone else before you like you always do. Like we both have always been doing. Duty, family and loyalty more than anything else. For once, as my wise brother says, let us both listen to our hearts.."

"I love you Brienne. I always will, from this day until my last day. I offer you my heart, my love, my body and my soul."

Brienne was crying. She too bent down on her knees to meet his eyes, moved closer to him and softly kissed him on his lips. She was about to pull away when Jaime pulled her closer, kissing her again, this time deeply and passionately.

They were both smiling when they broke apart and got up.

"Wench, I never thought you were this thick. That was supposed to be a marriage proposal. I know I didn't do a good job of it. Like I said, I've never asked a woman to marry me before. You know, you are supposed to say yes or no."

"You never asked me to marry you, Kingslayer!"

"Ofcourse, I did. What was all that confession of my love for ?"

"Well, you didn't specifically ask me to marry you !"

"You do enjoy tormenting me, wench, don't you !" He then grew serious "Be my wife, Brienne. For all I know, I may not have much of my life remaining, but whatever I have, I want to spend it with you, that is, if you will have me. So, will you ?"

She nodded, smiling at him "Yes, Jaime"

"So all it took you was a long declaration of my love and a proposal of marriage to stop calling me _Ser._ ", he winked, and kissed her again.

They did not leave the room until the next morning.

 

 

 

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading and do share your feedback :)


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